Lemon Pound Cake

• 3 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 2 cups sugar
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 2 pints fresh blackberries, rinsed, for garnish
• Whipped heavy cream, for garnish

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set it aside. In the large bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter, lemon zest, and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 8 minutes. Add the lemon juice and eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Gradually add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture, alternately with the milk, scraping the bowl often, until the batter is thick and fluffy. Spoon the batter into a greased and floured tube pan and bake 1 hour 20 to 1 hour 25 minutes, or until the top of the cake is golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Remove the cake from the oven and transfer it to a wire rack. Run a sharp knife around the outer edge of the cake and set it aside 30 minutes to cool. Remove the tube pan insert from the pan and allow the cake to cool 20 minutes more. Run a sharp knife between the cake and the bottom of the pan, place the wire rack over the top of the pan, and invert the cake. Set it aside until it has cooled completely.

To serve, dust the top of the cake with confectioners’ sugar, slice, and serve with blackberries and a swirl of sweetened Chantilly cream.

Yield: 10 to 12 servings

High Altitude Baking: Reduce baking powder to 1 teaspoon, butter to ¾ cup, and sugar to 1 ½ cups. Add 1 additional egg and 1 teaspoon vanilla.